Wear a properly fastened helmet on motorcycles and electric bicycles
A helmet with its chin strap fastened lowers a motorcyclist's risk of dying in a crash by about 40% and of head injury by about 70%. Tighten the strap: a helmet resting loosely on your head does not count.
What it takes
A helmet costs about RMB 100–300 in China. Putting it on takes 5 seconds.
What you may gain
A Cochrane pooled analysis found 42% lower mortality among helmeted motorcycle riders: OR 0.58, 95% CI 0.50–0.68. Head injuries were 69% lower: OR 0.31, 95% CI 0.25–0.38.
Context & considerations
Fasten the chin strap; hanging the helmet on the handlebars offers no protection. These figures come from motorcycle research. The recommendation for electric bicycles is an extrapolation, without direct research here, based on the similar mechanism of head injury in a collision.
Research & references
Liu BC et al. (2008). Helmets for preventing injury in motorcycle riders. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD004333.pub3